We began looking at the origins
of steel-string guitars
in February (read it at premierguitar. com/feb2011). This month,
we continue by comparing nylon
and steel-string instruments.

The difference in stringing is
obvious, but this is only superficial.
The most meaningful differences
are internal and structural,
and have to do with the fact that
the steel-string guitar must be
built to withstand relatively great
string tension compared to the
nylon-string or Spanish guitar.
(Before nylon strings were invented,
Spanish guitars were strung
with gut strings.) And being built
differently, these instruments produce
tone differently. As a matter
of fact, from an engineering
standpoint, nylon- and steel-string
guitars are totally different instruments
that simply share the same
name. The principal elements
unique to the steel-string guitar
are its neck design and size, the
bridge, and the X-bracing under
the face or soundboard. Let’s look
at each of these elements in turn.

First, virtually all steel-string
guitars have adjustable tension
rods that are designed to counteract
the pull of the strings. These
truss rods have access ports either
behind the nut or through the
soundhole. The neck on nylon-string
guitars are under much less
of a load and do not need reinforcing
rods.

The necks on steel-string and
Spanish guitars are sized and
shaped to support very different
playing styles. Spanish guitars
work best for a technique that
anchors the fretting-hand thumb
behind the neck, while the wrist
bends and extends the fingers
over the fretboard. Accordingly,
this neck is wide and its back is
shaped with a somewhat flattened,
gentle curve.

The steel-string guitar was
originally developed for a playing
style in which the fretting-hand
thumb wraps around the neck,
while the picking-hand attacks
the strings with a plectrum.
Therefore, a steel-string guitar’s
neck is narrow with closer string
spacing. It also has a somewhat
triangular cross-section with a
softly rounded “peak” in the
back. This design is optimized to
allow players to wrap their hands
around the neck, as the “V” shape
fits into the valley between the
thumb and the other fingers.

The steel-string bridge differs
greatly from its Spanish counterpart.
For starters, the strings tie
directly onto the Spanish guitar
bridge. This design works well
within the holding power of the
glue joint that keeps the bridge
on the guitar face. Metal strings,
however, exert so much pull that
merely glued-on bridges will lift
off. Steel-string luthiers realized
that a better solution was to
anchor the strings to the underside
of the face itself, and bypass
the possibility of glue failure at
the bridge. This explains why
the strings pass through the
bridge into the body cavity on a
steel-string.

Also, the Spanish guitar saddle
is parallel to the frets, while the
steel-string saddle is at an angle.
This is necessary because the very
stiffness and mass of metal strings
create intonation problems,
which increase with string diameter.
Heavier strings need to be
slightly longer to achieve correct
intonation, and slanted saddles
are called “compensated” saddles
for this reason.

Both the layout and amount
of bracing control a guitar’s sonic
characteristics. I wrote about
this in my August 2010 column,
“What Makes an Acoustic Tick.”
You can read it online at premierguitar.com/aug2010 and view photos that
illustrate various bracing patterns.
There are many factors that go
into a guitar’s internal bracing,
and the importance of these factors
far outweighs the instrument’s
structural characteristics when
discussing sonic traits.

I’m often asked, “Why are
there so many sizes and shapes of
steel-string guitars to choose from,
while classical guitars all have very
nearly the same size and shape?”
The classical guitar is considered
almost perfect by its adherents,
and builders are encouraged to
refine the design, but not change
it. The steel-string guitar world,
however, is not bound by such
thinking and steel-string builders
are free to invent new versions
and features as long as someone
will buy their instruments—much
like the automobile industry.
Consequently, with both cars and
guitars, models are sometimes
released that are not on par with
their predecessors.

Another and more interesting
reason is that steel-string guitar
music and its playing techniques
are changing. In the classical guitar
world, these factors are moving
ahead slowly as technique,
repertoire, and accepted design
are comparatively frozen. Because
the flattop guitar is so relatively
new—virtuosic steel-string soloists,
interpreters, arrangers, and
composers only really began to
emerge in the 1960s—we’re experiencing
an explosion of musicians
who are exploring and discovering
new tonal, dynamic, and compositional
possibilities for their
chosen instrument.

Consequently, guitarists are
demanding higher levels of
responsiveness, tonality, playability,
and fidelity of intonation
from their steel-strings.
Most recently, ease of amplification
and recordability have
also become essential considerations.
This is a very exciting
time for the steel-string guitar,
and there’s no reason to think
these factors will not continue
to grow for decades to come.
Next month, we’ll wrap up our
exploration of the steel-string
with thoughts about its cultural
significance.

Ervin Somogyi
A professional luthier
since the early 1970s,
Ervin Somogyi is one
of the world’s most
respected acoustic-guitar
builders and
rosette designers. To learn more about
Somogyi, his instruments, or his rosette
and inlay artwork, visit esomogyi.com.

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